“Oh, but I do,” he says, his jaw taut with tension as our hands battle for supremacy underneath my dress. “Your mother’s the only woman I’ve ever loved. But she betrayed me, and she needs to be punished for that. The severity depends on you.”
“Why?”
“Let’s cut the bullshit, Lo. We both know why.” He pulls back, removing his hand, and I fight hard to disguise my abject relief. “The mourning period is over. This is a new dawn. You will do what I say or you and the lovely Giana will suffer the consequences.”
I don’t hold back, leveling him with every ounce of hatred I feel in my heart. I don’t know how, but someday, that man is going to die, and I’m going to be the one with my finger on the trigger.
He drops my cell in my lap before walking off, pausing at the door. He turns to watch me. “Your destiny was set in motion the second Giana left me for him. I don’t give a fuck about fairness or what’s right and what’s wrong. If you want someone to hate, hate your parents, because it’s always been their fault.” His mouth pulls into a cocky grin, and he blows me a kiss before exiting the room, leaving me frozen in place.
All the panic I’ve kept at bay surges forward, and my pulse throbs wildly in my neck as potent fear sluices through my veins.
I haven’t been fooling him at all! That he’s been watching me is no surprise, but the fact he knows I know is. “Fuck it!” I throw my cell at the wall, watching it shatter, as my stomach twists and turns.
I need to implement my plan, and fast.
Movement out of the corner of my eye captures my attention, and I whip my head up. My eyes latch on familiar blue eyes as Saint steps out from behind the shelving unit. Anger rolls off him in waves as he strides toward me slowly.
I climb to my feet, quickly recovering my composure. “Does Sinner know you’re spying on him?” Did Sinner sanction it, or Saint has doubts about his father, especially around me?
“What did he mean?” he growls, gripping my forearm and tugging me into him.
That same charge is in the air, and I sway in his arms as he lowers his fierce gaze to my lips. His erection prods against my stomach, and sheer liquid lust competes with raw rage on his face. He looks torn between wanting to strangle me and wanting to kiss me, and I can relate, because he invokes the same reactions in me. He reeks of unrestrained anger and danger, and I’m fucked in the head because I press in closer to him, turned on instead of being disgusted. His eyes darken, holding me a prisoner in place, and I couldn’t move right now even if I wanted to. Which I don’t, because my hormones have clearly eviscerated all sense of self-protection and logic.
“I asked you a question.”
His words warn me not to fuck with him, and his eyes burn through me, searching, probing, and attempting to strip me bare, to see everything I can’t let him see. But I’m powerless to break eye contact, drowning in those dangerous blue depths until I can’t feel where he ends and I begin.
His penetrating stare takes me back to the moment we bonded, and I don’t believe he’s forgotten.
I know I’m imprinted on his soul the same way he is on mine.
“You already know the answer,” I whisper.
“What the actual fuck?”
Galen’s snippy tone breaks us apart, and I turn my head to the door where the other three guys are watching us with matching suspicious gazes.
I’ve dropped my barriers, and I’m feeling too much right now. It’s a rare moment of vulnerability, and I’m wide-open in a room full of sharks.
I need to get out of here before I reveal something important.
I dash to the door, pushing my way through the testosterone barrier and fleeing to the safety of my bedroom.
No one stops me, but I know I’m on borrowed time.
CHAPTER 10
“Here,” Emmett says, handing me a beer the instant I plop my butt down on the threadbare couch in Sariah’s living room. Her grandma is at bingo tonight, so we have the place to ourselves. “You look like you need it.”
“Man, do I ever.” I drain half the bottle in one go, sinking back into the couch as I finally relax. My muscles were wound tighter than Bradley Cooper on Oscar night.
“That bad, huh?” Sariah says coming into the room carrying a massive bowl of chips. Sean is behind her carrying a couple of dips.
“It was like outlaw central. Mom’s definitely lost a few friends tonight.”
Thank God, I eventually managed to convince my bestie to sit this one out. She wanted to come to support me. The three of them did. But I put my foot down. Bringing them tonight would have put them directly in The Sainthood’s path, and I’m already risking their lives as it is. I won’t deliberately put them at risk, which is why I’ve already told all of them they are banned from my house whenever Neo is there.
I know firsthand how gangs work. They target friends and family and use them to force cooperation. Over my dead fucking body will Neo use Sariah, Sean, or Emmett to make me toe the line. And that’s the main reason why I’m here tonight. They need to know what’s at stake, and it can’t wait for our diner date. They need to hear this now.
I take another sip of my beer as I consider how best to start this conversation. But, honestly, there’s no good or easy way to say this, so I just rip the Band-Aid off.
“I need to explain some stuff, because things are seriously fucked up. Anyone connected with me is in danger.”
Emmett sits up straighter, angling his body so he’s looking me more directly in the face. “What kind of danger?”
“The life-ending kind of danger.”
His chest heaves, and he gulps. “What’s going on?”
“Are you sure you want to know?” My eyes move around the room. “I won’t fault anyone for walking away before it gets too deep.”
“I’m all in.” Sariah doesn’t hesitate.
“Sure?”
“Hundo P. I’ve got your back. Always.”
A layer of stress flitters away, and my heart swells at her instant loyalty.
I fucking love this girl so hard. “Right back at ya. I’m always here for you.”
“I’m in too,” Sean says. “You’re as much my friend as Sariah’s, and we don’t abandon friends in times of need.”
I nod, smiling despite the tension swirling in the air. “Truth, and I’d do the same for you.”
I refocus on Emmett, and I won’t hold it against him if he wants no part of this. He’s not as invested as Sariah and Sean, and our friendship is still new. “You need to protect your sister. I totally get that. While I will do everything in my power to keep all of you out of the firing line, if you’re privy to this, I can’t promise they won’t come after you.”
He runs a hand through his messy hair, and strands of dark brown hair tumble over his forehead. “I’m already involved. I’m already on their radar. And no one dictates who I can and can’t hang out with. Provided we’re smart, we can keep my sister out of this.”
“I won’t fault you for walking away, Emmett. You’re the least invested here.”
He shakes his head. “Nope. I’m in. Hit me with it.”